A contractor who stole $18,000 worth of jewelry from a Seven Fields woman says he'll work full time and live with his parents to pay her back.

“I'm truly sorry. It was nothing personal. I had a bad drug habit,” Aaron L. Rademacher, 39, of Pittsburgh told the victim while in Butler County Court on Thursday.

“I'm 11 months clean now, and I know I would not have committed these crimes if I had not been under the influence of drugs.”

According to court records, Rademacher was hired to fix a door handle on a sliding-glass door by a homeowner on Castle Creek Drive.

The work was to be done while the homeowner was away in November 2014.

But when the woman returned to her home, she discovered the contractor was gone and so was her jewelry.

The Evans City Regional Police were able to determine that Rademacher sold the jewelry at pawn shops in Cranberry and Ross townships, according to court records.

Rademacher pleaded guilty to theft and was sentenced by Butler County Judge William Shaffer. He was sentenced to serve up to 12 months in prison, but was immediately paroled because he already served 58 days in jail awaiting resolution of the case.

Additionally, he must serve 30 months of probation and pay for the jewelry that was not recovered: $3,580 to the victim, $10,185 to the victim's insurance company.

Rademacher made a payment of $2,000 at his sentencing.

The victim did not speak during the hearing.